Putin's Best Wishes To Former President Bush Is A Message To President Obama

In Wishing Bush Well, Putin Has Message For Obama -- Reuters

(Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin sent a telegram on Thursday to his old sparring partner, former U.S. President George W. Bush, wishing him a quick recovery from heart surgery.

It may have been coincidence that the Kremlin released details of the telegram a day after Barack Obama pulled out of a planned summit with Putin, but little is left to chance in Russian politics.

The warm words to the man who once said he looked Putin in the eye and got a "sense of his soul" highlighted how different the relationship is between the leaders in the Kremlin and the White House now.

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More News On U.S. - Russian Relations

U.S.-Russia relationship turns chilly, again -- Washington Post
New chill whistles through US-Russia relations -- BBC
Obama-Putin deep freeze harks back to Cold War -- Euronews
Kremlin ‘disappointed’ Obama called off Putin talks, decision is 'Snowden-related' -- RT
Obama cancels summit meeting with Putin over Snowden case -- Washington Post
Chinese media on Snowden: Washington 'ate the dirt' this time -- RT
How Obama’s Putin Snub Is Playing Out in Russia -- Simon Shuster, Time
Russian media predict big freeze in US ties -- BBC
Friends…or enemies? For US and Russia it’s business as usual -- Aliyah Frumin, MSNBC
Another Cold Spell for U.S.-Russia Relations -- Council On Foreign Relations

My Comment: Both Putin and Bush have had their differences .... but personally they have always gotten along "OK" .... including inviting each other to their respective homes .... so this "get-well" note from Putin is not a surprise. Putin is also someone who has valued cultivating relationships with current and former world leaders who he can personally get along with. That is why he is very close to former Italian leader Silvio Berlusconi and former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. He also knows that Jeb Bush may run for the U.S. Presidency in 2016 .... so keeping his ties with the Bush family is just good politics and diplomacy.